Case Study

Tess

Tess was my 12 year old little Bichon Frise girl. She became distressed and unwell and after an ultrasound was diagnosed with a 4 x 6 cm growth on her spleen and a shadow on her liver – this was in early March 2014. I was devastated and was advised to operate as it would give her an extra 4 – 6 weeks of life..

We decided against an operation as she may not have survived the procedure; so I asked Patty for advice on what we could do to help Tess with Natural Therapies. Tess was already on a healthy BARF diet, and now her regime from Patty included Reiki therapy and photonic therapy with herbal and homeopathic remedies including Transfer Factor to support her immune system – she was not in pain and continued to eat well.

Tess responded well with this treatment and was able to lead a normal and happy life; walks twice a day and sometimes a very active blitz around the house. I took each day as a bonus as it was uncertain how long she could keep going.

She was such a loved friend and companion, and with Patty's care, loving kindness and attention, Tess lasted an amazing 12 months. She is sadly missed by all.

BC the Cat and Qula the dog.

I decided to end the year on a couple of similar case studies that show how resilient dogs and cats can be if given a chance. My mum’s cat BC has just turned 21 years old and I have been treating her for renal issues and mega colon since she was diagnosed with Kidney Failure when she was 16 years old.

She is truly amazing and very active for a 21 year old but at the beginning of September she had a stroke and was very weak down her left side, staggering around and being unable to stand for any length of time. I was worried that this was going to be the end, but since she was not in pain I decided to get her onto some good heart supplements and see if she would eat.

She ate her food well and she could still urinate so I decided to see how she would go over the next few days. I have to say she is amazing, she managed to get up onto her couch the next day with a step in place and over the next 2 weeks she started to get stronger and now apart from a tilt to the left side when she walks you would not know she had had a stroke.

A month later Qulas mother called me to say Qula had just had a stroke and she was wondering if she needed to put her down. I discussed my cat and asked her if she was happy and eating, which she was so we decided to get her onto the heart supplements and see how she progressed over the next few days. The same thing happened with Qula, with her eating well, being interested in everything that is going on at home and the park, but she has had very weak back legs for a number of years so we have struggled to get her walking again. But Sonya is going to keep working with her as she loves swimming and can use her legs when in the water and she looks so well again you would not know she had suffered a stroke a couple of months ago. Animals never cease to amaze me with their resilience and determination to just get on with life. It is a true honour to be able to work with them.

Toby the Cavalier.

Toby was rescued with a number of health issues with a new owner that is very focussed on Natural Therapies where possible. He had a number of behaviour issues and needed an operation on his Cruciate Ligament. He responded well to all the work his owner put into his rehabilitation and became a happy little dog.

Just recently his hind leg became very inflamed and he could not place any weight on this leg. The Vet said he needed an urgent operation as this leg was due to an autoimmune condition and if they did not operate immediately he would not walk again, although they could not guarantee success and it had a high probability of reoccurrence. His owner decided to refuse the operation and use natural remedies and massage to help Toby to walk properly again.

So we started him on a natural anti-inflammatory, Transfer Factor for the immune system and weekly massage and photonic therapy. He started to put weight on the leg after the second massage and apart from a set back from falling off the couch, he is now walking normally and all the inflammation has resolved. I always view surgery as a last resort rather than a first resort as often with the right therapy and good rest a lot of issues will be resolved as long as the Cruciate Ligament has not totally snapped. I recently treated a German Shepherd whose owner was told the Cruciate had snapped and she needed an urgent operation but the owner wanted me to see her first and the fact that she could put some weight on the leg indicated the Cruciate was not snapped. She has also responded will to therapy and is back to walking well on her leg.

Prudence My Cat

Prudence was delivered to me when she was only 6 weeks old and she was given the name Prudence as she was a very feisty kitten, would beat up my older cat Biggles who was 3 times her size, would not be picked up or cuddles under any circumstances and was just a very independent miss.

Once she turned 2 years old she decided that maybe a cuddle and lap sit was not that terrible a thing to happen and by the time she was 4 years old you could not get a more affectionate cat. She had also decided that Biggles was her best friend so all was well in the household. She has been a very healthy cat all her life, she was vaccinated with her kitten shots and at 15 month of age and has not been vaccinated since. She has always been fed raw food or cans and before I became a natural therapist she did get some dry kibble during the day.

Pruedy or Schnook Bear as she is now called was diagnosed with Kidney Failure when she turned 15 years old and was given 6 months maximum to live. I was studying to become a natural therapist at this stage and had already completed my studies in nutrition so I knew I had to get her off all dry kibble. I also had an issue as Prue would not eat chicken, she loved veal and beef but these meats had to go as they are very acidic and make the kidneys work very hard. It took me just over 2 months to completely change her diet so she would eat BARF and white meats and would not demand the “Kitty Crack” as the Holistic vets in the States call Dry Kibble.

I have been treating her Kidney’s with herbs, homeopathy and diet and she had regained her health and was doing well over 4 years later. I did blood tests for her kidney function 6 months after diagnosis and starting her herbs and homeopathy and her kidney markers were just above normal. A repeat test 6 months later showed they were still just above normal and this was the same for a test 12 months later.

August last year she got a tick that was brought in with the washing and she amazed everyone with how well she dealt with the tick poisoning, she was paralysed and had to have her bladder emptied for 3 days but she just soldiered on and with Homeopathic drops and tick serum she was able to come home the same day as she was admitted to the vet and was back to normal in a few days.

A month after having the tick she suddenly had very dilated pupils in both eyes and I knew she had developed blood pressure. I took her to the vet to get a reading and sure enough her blood pressure was through the roof. She was completely blind due to bleeding into her retinas and I was told that this blindness would be permanent. I took her home with some blood pressure meds that are used in humans, and I used these until I could organize the necessary natural therapies. Unfortunately she did not tolerate the blood pressure pills; they made her disoriented, off her food and very thirsty. I have always treated her with natural therapies so I think she decided she would not take chemicals even short term.

I started her on Herbs and Homeopathics and was excited to see that within 4 days she could see again. She was truly amazing though, when she could not see she would still manage to use her whiskers to get up the stairs and go to her favourite spot on the balcony to sum herself, jump up onto the bed using her steps I have made for her, the bed is too high for her to get onto in one jump due to her arthritis. I have checked her blood pressure a month later and it was significantly lower and she continues on her natural treatments for Kidney’s, Arthritis and Blood Pressure.

Unfortunately the tick had knocked her around and she had started to look and act more her age each month, and suddenly on Monday the 3rd of February she decided to stop eating and drinking and I knew her time was close. I took her to the Vets to get her blood pressure checked and to have some fluids to keep her comfortable and they told me her blood pressure was perfect and they were very happy with her. I rescheduled all my appointments on Wednesday as I knew she would pass that day or night and we spent the day together with her sleeping and occasionally looking for me, where I would place my hand on her head and she would go back to sleep. She died sleeping next to me on the bed at 3:15am on Thursday morning.

I really miss her so much as we spent 20 years together, she would come up stirs and tell me to come to bed at 10pm every night, she was my alarm clock in the morning giving me a tap on the face at 6am to say it was time to get up and get her breakfast. She was always beside me sleeping with her head next to mine on the pillow. I was very blessed to have had such a special friend and guide in my life for so long. I want to thank you all for your support and kindness through the tick period and when Prue passed. She is buried at home in a lovely spot under 3 gum trees and I see her every time I drive into my driveway. A special thank you to Barbara who managed to get a star named after Prudence, which is just above the constellation of Sagittarius.

I have been asked a few times about letting her pass on her own time and euthanasia, and I do believe it is best if possible to let animals pass on their own, obviously if they are in a lot of pain or are severely stressed you need to assist them to pass, and in this case I usually get the vet to come to my home. It is a very individual decision and each person needs to make their own decision based on the needs of their pet at the time.

Buddy The Border Collie

Buddy’s owner called me in great distress as her beloved 7 year old Border Collie Buddy was very ill with what the vets had diagnosed as Bells Palsy. The vets had told her there was nothing they could do so she was a bit desperate. When Buddy arrived you could see the right side of his face was drooping and paralysed, his right ear was also dropped down and he was constantly drooling from his mouth on the right side. He had lost a lot of weight, had very itchy skin and yeast infections in his ears.

He had been given antibiotics and cortisone tablets from the Vets and was currently on another course of Cortisone Tablets that she had found to be ineffective. When I questioned his owner she told me that Buddy had nearly died a year ago from tick poisoning and a few months ago she had found another paralysis tick on Buddy which fortunately had not sent him to the vet hospital.

We needed to treat Buddy’s immune system to get on top of the yeast infection so he was started on Transfer Factor. We also started him on a Probiotic to reseed his gut from the antibiotics he had been given from the Vets. As Bells Palsy is often caused by tick bite and Lyme’s Disease we needed to detox his system from the tick and we used Homeopathics to treat the Lyme’s Disease and the Bell’s Palsy. We also changed Buddy’s diet to a healthy species appropriate raw food, which he loves. I am very happy to report that Buddy has made a full recovery with no more dribbles and droopy face and his yeast infection and itchy skin are things of the past. His owner is very happy and tells me that her Buddy has regained his status as a very handsome Border Collie.

Jordan the Border Collie

Jordan came to me in August last year as his owner was desperate to try and help him and the vet had run out of options. When I saw Jordan he walked extremely slowly and was very stiff in his action and he had laboured breathing. He was on Prevacox every day from the vet for his arthritis as well as Paws joint formula and Seaflex. He was constantly vomiting up lots of foamy saliva after rushing outside to eat lots of grass and was not able to keep his food down. He also had a thyroid condition and was being treated for this with thyroid hormones from the vet. His owner was preparing herself for Jordan to not be alive much longer.

Jordan has a great mum that is prepared to do anything for him, so we had to radically change his diet from kibble to a healthy raw food diet. All his food has to be pureed so it is easy for him to swallow and he needs to be fed a number of smaller meals in a day. He started on K9 Natural with fresh pureed fruit and vegetables and a couple of months later shifted to Ziwipeak, as it was easier to make a complete puree with no hard bits like bones to aggravate his cough.

He needed a natural anti-inflammatory as his symptoms suggested a serious inflammatory condition and Bovine Tracheal Cartilage for his severe arthritis. Jordan was also given a herbal formula to help deal with the mucus build up in his throat. Jordan showed signs of improvement within the first week, loving his food and was not vomiting food with the mucus and saliva anymore. He then began to have fewer episodes of rapid grass eating and vomiting saliva and mucus. We added in a Probiotic to restore his normal gut flora and help his immune system.

We would normally have given Jordan a massage with Photonic for his arthritis, but Jordan will only let his mum touch him, which has been the case since he was a pup. It took a bit longer as we had to rely totally on the supplements but Jordan is now walking a lot better, going for walks each day. He has not vomited his food for many months now and has put on weight. He was having the odd coughing episode at night without vomiting saliva and mucus so we added in some Manuka honey to coat his throat and homeopathic drops for cough relief which seem to be working well. Jordan has no intention of going anywhere for some time and we love it when he comes to visit.

A final comment from his mum: “I am still very pleased with him and the gulping and mucus attacks don't happen anymore. He does get some saliva-type mucus dribbling out of his mouth from time to time (like a stalactite!) but I just wipe it away. It doesn't happen very often. Thanks for all your expertise and help. I am so grateful for the way you have helped him improve with all the ideas of natural food and vegetables. It has certainly made a big difference to his life”.

Just recently we decided to bite the bullet and give Jordan a massage and Photonic treatment, with the understanding that if he became distressed or started to bite then we would stop and leave him just on the supplements. I am happy to report that he is enjoying his massages and has been a model citizen, very happy to get onto the massage bed once he had his first massage.

Biggles the Cat

Biggles was born unusual as he was the only kitten in the litter, which is very rare for cats. He grew very quickly but from a very young age he had constant issues with his teeth and gums. He was constantly on Cortisone for the inflammation in his mouth and the Gingivitis.

He would also get very sick after he was vaccinated. I was told by the vets that it was not the vaccine and that I must continue to vaccinate him each year, and as I knew no better I complied and nursed my cat through the aftermath of these needles. He was tested at the Natural Vet when he was 14 years old and found to have a severe vaccine allergy, which taught me that we know our animals best and should follow out gut.

When he was 4 years old we had to remove a few teeth, and I was convinced that I should try to save his teeth as how could he eat without teeth I asked myself. When he was 6 years old I had decided not to vaccinate him anymore and also to get all his teeth removed as I did not want him having anymore Cortisone. What a difference this made, with my cat happy and healthy without teeth and still able to eat anything he wanted, even cat biscuits. He would throw them up in the air and catch them in his mouth and swallow them. If I had my time over again I would have had all his teeth removed when he was 4 years old.

Biggles came from a father that had died of Kidney failure very young, so I was always worried about the Cortisone. He also would never eat red meat right from being a kitten, only chicken, turkey or fish, as if he knew that red meat would make his kidney work harder.

When Biggles turned 14 years old he was diagnosed with Inflammatory Bowel Disease. He was not acting like himself one day so took him to the vet and was told he was fine. However I insisted on them taking his temperature and this was through the roof. He then started to vomit constantly even with no food in his stomach which was very distressing for both of us and became very constipated, needing enemas to pass his stools. We sent him off for tests and found he had inflammatory bowel disease.

He was started on Cortisone to reduce the inflammation and this helped him a lot for the first few weeks, but then gave him diabetes. This meant that I had to do regular glucose tests and give him insulin every day as well as the vet selling me a Hill’s Science diet for his diabetes, which he hated. I was then told that we could remove a large section of his bowel, which is the most common treatment, or that he would have to be euthanized reasonably soon as this condition could not be managed long term.

This is when I decided there had to be something else I could do for my cat as he was healthy despite his bowel issues. I found Barbara Fougere and Biggles and I consulted her. I felt his Diabetes could be controlled with diet and she agreed telling me to stop the diet from the Vet and go back to feeding him his Chicken etc. I added some pumpkin to his food to help his bowel. He was also started on herbs to restore the Peristalsis to his gut, some prune juice in his food and we monitored his Diabetes once back on a fresh diet.

His diabetes resolved within a month so he no longer required insulin. The vets were amazed that his peristalsis was restored and he could pass his own faeces with the help of a stool softener and the herbs. He would occasionally need assistance but this became less frequent as the time passed.

Biggles was nearly 18 years old when I made the decision to let him go. He was finding it hard to get around with severe arthritis and I was getting no sleep as he wanted to sleep with me but could not get off the bed to get to the litter tray and would get very distressed if he could not make it to the tray.

Barbara and another Vet Joanna suggested I study to become a natural therapist for animals given my background and knowledge and given what happened with my Biggles I decided that this was what I needed to do so dogs and cats could have other options like my Biggles.

Claude's Story

I first met Claude in late October 2010. It is hard to put into words how bad Claude looked with no hair, extremely red and inflamed skin, bleeding from multiple areas that he had scratched constantly and so miserable he would go up into the rafters of the roof to hide.

His owner had spent a fortune on Vet bills trying to get Claude better. He had a very resistant Ringworm infection which he had been infected with as a kitten, which had been treated with every therapy the vets had for Ringworm, and he also had a compromised immune system. Nothing like a challenge!

Claude was started on some Herbs for his Ringworm both topical and also internal, as well as herbs for his skin allergy. He was also stated on a Probiotic and Transfer Factor for his immune system. Claude started to show improvement within a couple of weeks but kept getting flair ups in his symptoms, especially areas around his ears, back of the neck and his abdomen, particularly when we tried to reduce the dose of Transfer Factor.

The Vet felt he should have a bath in a chemical that treated Ringworm so Claude had this done. It helped him initially, but then after a few days he once again started to scratch and bleed. Claude being a sharing kind of Cat gave me Ringworm under my watch strap. I treated it with Teatree, then with other Herbs which helped contained and reduced it, but it persisted and would Flair up particularly on humid days. I treated my Ringworm with cedar Oil, applied twice a day for 5 days, and it totally cleared and has not returned. We then started Claude on Cedar Oil topically, which helped sooth his itches straight away. We alternated between Cedar Oil and herbs applied topically to treat the ring worm and itches.

Claude was started on an elimination diet, as we found he had flair ups when he ate fish or chicken. He was placed on one protein source for 6 weeks, which has continued while we battled to get things under control, and on a digestive enzyme to help his protein allergy. We have managed to get Claude eating Rabbit BARF for cats, which he loves and his Immune system is now functioning much better with no Ringworm evident. The Transfer Factor has helped his hair grow back, (this also happened in her other cat that was sick and bald, given transfer factor, but that’s another story).

The red spots on his stomach proved very resistant to treatment and the vet felt it could be Staph infection so he was started on antibiotics. This unfortunately did not address the problem and the antibiotics were changes a couple of times with no success. His blood tests indicated he had an inflammatory condition and I decided to start him on a natural anti-inflammatory. This started to work within a week and he is finally spot free an itch free all over his body.

So we finally have a happy cat that is playful and not hiding, with almost normal hair again and not scratching and ripping himself to pieces. We now only get flair ups when he steals some of the other cats biscuits or gets into the fridge to steal things. The difference now is that these flair ups only last a couple of days now rather than a few weeks since treatment with the Transfer Factor. He has been able to cope without transfer factor after 6 months of treatment. He is being kept on the natural anti-inflammatory, a Probiotic and the digestive enzyme, and he is never fed fish or chicken. I would have liked to get Claude onto some Omega for his skin and coat but he cannot tolerate any fish oil, he does get some flaxseed however.

Lady

Lady is a 13 year old West Highland white terrier who came to me in September as she had been sick for some time and had been tested at the Vets and the Specialist Hospital with no definitive diagnosis found. She had been treated with a number of different antibiotics, had been scanned and x-rayed and the plan was to do a spinal tap when her owners decided to stop the tests and come to me with Lady.

I will never forget Lady coming into my clinic carried in her owners’ arms, and when she was placed on the massage bed she just flopped over onto her side, shacking uncontrollably. She was unable to walk more than a couple of steps and could not sit up or stand up without help. She was off her food and was losing a lot of weight. I have to say that I looked at Lady and thought to myself that this was going to be a huge challenge.

I found out that Lady had suffered from skin problems on and off since she was 6 months, she had 3 lumps removed from her chest which had been benign and her Liver enzymes were markedly elevated in her blood. The Specialist had detected from the blood tests that she had an infection and fever of unknown origin which had not responded to any of the antibiotics that had been tried.

Her muscles had severely wasted as she had been unable to exercise for a number of weeks and I felt that the shaking was due to both a fever but also pain. We decided to get working on her immune system with Transfer Factor, and also start to sort out the inflammation with a natural anti-inflammatory. She was also started on a Probiotic to re-establish her gut flora from all the antibiotic treatment she had been given, we also started her on some supplements for her arthritis and muscle weakness so her pain was reduced.

We wanted to get her eating a good raw food diet to get her nutrient levels up and make sure she had a balanced diet that was easy for her to digest. She also had a Photonic treatment to treat her acupuncture points. It was a slow road but she started to eat a day after her first visit and her shaking was dramatically reduced after her first treatment. She continued to make good progress over the next few weeks, with regular weekly massages and photonic treatments and I am happy to report that Lady is now barking with the other dogs when people come to the house, is eating well, has gained weight and is back to walking normally around her yard at home. I have done a couple of home visits to give her a massage and photonic treatment and it is so exciting to see her run over to great me, barking with the other dogs, give me a number of licks during the massage and be such a cheeky girl again. We have to give her variety in her food or she gets bored easily, and her dad tells me she has so much more energy now she is eating a raw food diet.

Tango

Tango came to see me as he had terrible wheezes, coughs and asthma attacks as well as chronic sneezing. He was on an asthma puffer from the vets but was still struggling. When he was in my office with me he had a bad wheezing attack and I could see how scared they made him and how distressing they would be to his owners. The scans of his lungs were clear.

Tango also suffered from skin allergies and had a very poor coat and hair missing, and he continually licked at his front legs. Tango also suffered from recurrent ear and eye infections and had a very serious reaction to tick serum a few ago. Tango had been treated with Cortisone for over a year for his skin condition.

We started Tango on some Herbs for his asthma and to help break up the phlegm, Transfer Factor for his immune system, a natural anti-inflammatory, a Probiotic for his gut health and Omega Mix and Cedar Oil for his skin and his diet was changed to eliminate cooked food and chicken and he is now eating a raw food diet which he loves.

Tango has responded very well to his treatment. We have tried to stop the Transfer Factor and Anti-inflammatory a couple of times but he relapses so we need to keep him on these for a while yet to correct the underlying condition. Tango now has a full coat and his skin condition has resolved. He gets occasional ear and eye infections but these are cleared with natural therapies. His owners report that he is a very different and happy dog now with more energy, soft skin and a beautiful thick coat.

Bobby

The case study for this month is Bobby, a Bichon with digestive issues. Bobby has been vomiting on and off for four years now, starting out at serious vomits every 6 weeks, with a loss of energy and appetite just before these episodes and has steadily vomited more frequently with these episodes every week now. He also eats a large amount of grass every day. He has had regular visits with the vet and recently had an endoscopy done and a Barium Meal to find out what is going on, with six ulcers uncovered. He was started on a Proton Pump inhibitor to reduce the amount of acid in his stomach, but these come with various side effects such as vomiting, diarrhoea, loss of appetite to name a few. Bobby had terrible diarrhoea, loss of appetite and became very lethargic on this medication and it did not subside despite being on the meds for 6 days.

Bobby’s owner called me to see if I could help him as the vet said he had nothing left to offer apart from taking a larger biopsy from the stomach, and some Cortisone. Those of you who come to my clinic know my focus on diet and I soon found out that Bobby was being fed a homemade diet of fresh lamb, some cheese and occasional pieces of chicken, and Eukanuba dog kibble which he often left as he did not like this food. The problem with this diet even though it was fresh raw meat, was it was almost exclusively protein. A homemade diet is great if it is well balance, but if not balanced can be worse than a commercial dry kibble diet with grains. This often caused Bobby to have very loose and dark stools. I was told that Bobby would not eat anything except fresh lamb and when I met Bobby he had not eaten for a couple of days and was very lethargic.

So we needed to work on the ulcers, which are often caused by bacteria in the gut, although the biopsy did not show high levels of these bacteria. We also needed to get him onto a better balanced diet including fruit and vegetables, and supplements to coat his gut lining and restore his normal gut bacteria. We also needed to get Bobby onto 4 small meals a day instead of 2 large meals to give the acid in his stomach something to work on other than the stomach lining.

I am pleased to say that Bobby loves his K9 Natural Food, is eating all his supplements without problems and is also a big fan of the pureed fruit and vegetables in his food. He has stopped eating grass now and his owner has to mow the lawn again, is now full of energy and has become very cheeky. His stools are nice and firm and greatly reduced on his previous stools when fed with the fresh Lamb and small amount of Eukanuba diet.

Jack The Lad

Nick came to see me in January this year, to see if I could do anything to help Jack The Lad. Jack is a 4 year old Rex Cat who has been constantly itching for over 2 years and has had chronic constipation for over 12 months. Jack was having reactions to medication the vet had given him and also suffered from yeast infections in the ears, which he has had on and off every year. Jack was ripping into his eyes, which were puffy, half closed and red, and had lost hair from various parts of his body. He would get so itchy that he would damage his eyes and ears and often draw blood. Nick had to keep an Elizabethan collar on Jack to stop him injuring himself. If he took this off Jack then he would rip himself to shreds and start bleeding again.

Jack had been treated with cortisone and Antihistamines, as well as laxatives and stool softeners for the constipation. We had a very bumpy start to our journey to get Jack back to good health. Jack had a severely compromised immune system and had protein intolerance to a number of protein’s such as Kangaroo, Chicken, Veal, Beef and Fish of any kind, all of which made him extremely itchy. The only protein that he could tolerate was Lamb. The first thing we looked at was the diet and made sure Jack was fed a fresh raw food diet with no dry food.

The next issue was the immune system and this proved to be a challenge, with Jack reacting to the Probiotic for his gut health. Nick also gave Jack Transfer Factor, which resulted in Jack becoming very lethargic at first. This can happen as Transfer Factor starts to normalise the immune system and the body starts to deal with the health issues that are present. Nick stopped the Transfer Factor as Jack’s response scared him. Jack had other ideas though and a week later managed to break into the bottle of Transfer Factor and ate a whole capsule. After a worried phone call from Nick and my reassurance that all would be well, Jack continues to take Transfer Factor with no ill effects.

Jack was also started on a digestive enzyme to help him with his protein intolerance and a natural anti-inflammatory to reduce the puffiness around his eyes and his very red skin. We found that Jack could tolerate Rabbit as well as Lamb, and now Jack is able to eat BARF Rabbit food for cats as well as chunks of fresh Lamb to chew. Nick has also found that Jack can tolerate Ziwipeak for cats, which he gets as a treat.

Jack is now out of his collar, his hair has grown back, his eyes are normal and he no longer has a chronic yeast infection. He is also now going to the toilet regularly and has put on weight, so he is at a healthy weight again. What is really great though is Jack is back to playing and being cheeky, which tells us that he is feeling a great deal better.

Scout's Story

Scout’s owner came to me asking for a herbal remedy for car sickness, as Scout would continually vomit every time he was taken for a trip in the car, even to the dog park. The vet had checked him out and said he had no obvious physical issues and Jacqui was given some very expensive tablets to stop him getting car sick. Apart from the cost, these tablets would often not work.

I made up a herbal formula for car sickness that worked the first couple of times and then stopped working, so we were back to square one. When I was speaking to Jacqui a number of clues made me suspect that anxiety was behind Scout’s car sick behaviour.

Scout was rescued a few months before and had the car sickness from the beginning. I set up a time to visit Scout and Jacqui at home to observe what happened with Scout when Jacqui left for work and also his reaction to the car.

Scout had very strong separation anxiety issues and was extremely reluctant to go towards the garage and car. We set a program for Scout to deal with his separation anxiety issues and also help him over his car phobia.

Within a month Scout was no longer getting car sick and now can travel for 4 hours or longer without getting sick and without taking anything for car sickness. I tell this case study as often we forget that animals get stressed and anxious and this can lead to a lot of health issues. Sometimes once the emotional issues are under control the physical symptoms will disappear.

A note from Jacqui is that 'in fact Scout is so chilled in the car now - he goes to sleep after we've had a big walk. I can also leave him in the car if I need to run into the shops, and he doesn't chew anything, which was a big problem'.

Ella’s Story

Ella came to visit me after her owner had tried everything he could to help her. He told me I was his last resort and he needed to see me urgently.

We made a time for Ella and those of you who know my location will realise how bad Ella was when Michael phoned me to say they were near Woolworths and were on the way, and after waiting 20 minutes I called Michael to see if he was lost, to discover they had only managed to get half way to my clinic. I met them just near the ramp at Woolworths and we carried Ella into my clinic.

I will never forget how cold her paws were and how hot and inflamed all her joints were from arthritis. Michael and Ella loved to go to the dog park and Ella could hardly walk. She would have had so much pain in her joints.

That night she had her first massage and Photonic treatment, which we did every week for a month. She also started on natural supplements for her arthritis and joints, as well as herbs for her pain and arthritis. Her diet was radically changed to remove all carbohydrates and beef which can exacerbate arthritis.

Ella responded to her very first treatment over night and walked with more freedom, plus she even looked happier and more alert. After the massage and photonic in week number 3 she actually ran up a steep slope on her lawn to chase a person walking a dog on the street. We were all very excited.

Ella had a mast cell tumour removed from her right elbow approximately 6 months previously and had another lump removed from her chest area 2 months after first seeing me at the clinic, then, yet another from her stomach. We have since put her on a particular diet to ensure we don’t feed the cancer as well as Transfer Factor to boost her immune system and recently have started treating some incontinence issues together with the vet.

I recently treated Ella with Equissage, which gives a deep tissue massage and also is a detoxification treatment as it drains the lymph nodes. She had 3 treatments with Equissage and Photonic and she is now so much more mobile and active. Michael walks Ella to my clinic now in a normal time frame with her tail wagging and they both enjoy being back at the dog park together. (Equissage is used every day on the race horse Black Caviar after her morning track work.)

Ella recently had a health check-up at her normal vet and he was very surprised and pleased with her mobility and health. The usual precaution for Ella's Arthritis was to start her on a course of Cartrophen injections in the autumn months in preparation for the cold months ahead to aid in pain relief and occasionally, when needed, Previcox taken orally but she now no longer needs these.

Michael mentioned that he feels she is in far better health now than 2 years ago! Ella is now 11 years old and the matriarch of the park!

I would like to thank Michael and Ella for their invaluable input into this case study.